The commonly used windows-orientated user interfaces in offices are more and more often applied in the field of industry. The interaction in these windows-orientated operating systems, as they have been developed for the operation system Windows of the market leader Microsoft, occurs by means of coordinate determining interaction devices. In the field of offices a computer mouse is mostly used as interaction device. However an industrial application in a rough environment is not feasible unless it is protected against pollution. Further problems e.g. the non-available surface when a board is used and the machine vibrations in case of a non-coupled operating system are resulting from the industrial environment. Numerous alternative interaction devices are used to solve these problems, however their usability for the user could not be clarified and is rather questionable. Hence the aim is to be able to evaluate the usability of interaction devices. The evaluation of interaction devices must take into account the whole human being as user with its capabilities and capacities in order to avoid an excessive and onesided demand during the work process. A comparative investigation was carried out for alternative pointing devices to determine the usability of pointing devices for humans and their industrial suitability. The applicability and validity of the test methods are evaluated by determining the influence of various identification features such as experience of the user, operating position of the user, position of the interaction device and device design. If window-based software systems are applied during the development of a new control system, the techniques of mouse operation, DRAG&DROP etc., which are known from office applications, can not always be adapted. New generations of control systems will demand new solutions in the field of user interaction. The presented techniques with their specific advantages and disadvantages may provide first assistance for a selection.